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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 3, 2024 16:26:25 GMT -5
Rena hums softly to herself as she sits in her tree, slowly polishing and sharpening her bayonets as she waits for Elvira to arrive. The two of them had each received an invitation from this...Red Rogue group, and upon their arrival at the meeting place it had been explained to them that the group wanted to two of them to rob a warehouse owned by a particular group of nobles...Rena had been reluctant at first, not wanting that kind of heat to be brought onto herself and her eggs - her husband she wasn't worried about, with his soul in the blades he'd forged as an engagement gift - but then it had been explained what precisely this group of aristocrats were up to.
Overtaxing the people under them, enforcing poverty on their tenants and generally abusing their power and authority to accrue as much wealth as they could manage. The Crow-Mother had been...less reluctant after that. She'd dealt with big-headed pricks before, and felt more than a little satisfaction at the idea of bringing some more down a few pegs.
Back in the present, the crow finishes her maintenance of her bayonets, calmly sliding them up her sleeves as she chirps softly to herself, silver eyes watching her surroundings as she relaxes on her branch.
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Post by Elvira, Wandering Cleric on Jan 4, 2024 3:42:10 GMT -5
Elvira arrived in a nondescript hooded shawl with baggy pants and clothes. It was the first time Rena would have seen her without any identifying religious clothing. She did, however, leave the golden headpiece and dangling silver earrings in, perhaps to keep a piece of her family close to her. As she approaches Rena she lowers the hood and gives a wide, warm smile to the crow and takes the bow off of her back. A nasty gash of a scar lined the left cheek of the elf. It was tracing from just above the edge of the lip, across the cheek, and ending an inch before the ear. She, however, paid it no mind.
After climbing into the tree and gracefully sitting on a branch adjacent to the avian, she crossed her legs and hung the bow on a knot protruding from the tree's bark. Looking back to the crow, her intense blue eyes seem to cut through the darkness of the tree. The soft moonlight of the night accentuated the soft curves of her cheeks and sharp bones of her jawline. Her smile carried its own light, brightening up the darkness ever so slightly, while her smooth voice warmed the cool night. "It has been some time, Mother Crow. I am rather elated to see you. How are the eggs? How about Tolling Bell?"
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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 4, 2024 4:10:16 GMT -5
Rena smiles softly, trilling happily as she drops from the tree, ducking and flaring her wings to swoop in and land just in front of her pseudo-adopted chick, sweeping the taller woman into a hug and letting out a bright, happy chirp. "little one of mine! it's been far too long! the little ones have yet to hatch, but Sylvari's magic has kept them safe and warm for all these months since she and I first met. as for Bell..." she wilts a little, wings drooping a bit, "...no luck yet. but I've done research!" she perks up here, eyes bright shining silver, "between my mastery of his blades and my curse's ice, I might be able to become something called a Spellblade eventually, and once I've perfected both and reached a certain point of that, I'll be able to talk to him, and he'll be able to levitate..." the crow frowns in thought, "...either two or all of the blades he forged for me...I'm not certain on that. but still, it's progress!"
Brighteyes takes a step back, looking Elvari over for a moment before trilling again, "...anyhoo, how've you been doing, my little one? I see you've grown comfortable enough to take the scarf down around me!" the crow chirps happily again, hugging the elf once more, "manage to catch any time with that special one you've got your eye on?"
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Post by Elvira, Wandering Cleric on Jan 4, 2024 5:00:24 GMT -5
Elvira laughs as she is swept up into a massive hug, perhaps the largest one she had ever received. She wraps her arms around the mother crow, giving a firm squeeze in return. As she is dropped, she crosses her arms, tilts her head with curiosity, and listens to her psuedo-mother with a widened smile. "It certainly has been far too long, amillë quáco.1 Perhaps it is a blessing that they haven't hatched. I was not prepared! Also, you met with Sylvari yourself? I'm glad, she had pulled me out of a situation a week or two ago. I was ambushed by bandits and, well, I was on my heels when she arrived and swept through them with the ferocity of a devil. In all honesty, I am indebted to her for now." Her hand instinctively reaches up and touches the new scar on her cheek, sliding the fingertips across the rough skin from the blade that had glanced across her face. "I'm sure it will heal, but I'm indifferent should it not. Scars are stories, are they not?"
She smiles, hearing the solution Rena had come up with to contact her lover. It warmed her heart to hear. Perhaps she even had an adoptive father on the way? She shook the thought off. She decided it was too greedy of a thought. "I think either way, two or the full set, it will be enough. He will finally have a way to speak with you, to fill your heart with soothing words. Do not take this as a fact, but there is a possibility that the handle of the blade will feel as if you were holding his hand. There is a story of someone in a similar situation being a wielder of a Spellblade, and they reported as such."
"As for the one who has my eye, she is on a journey for now. I plan to meet with her once we return from the mission. Hopefully, I do not present myself upon her doorstep with even more scars," she jokes, donning a deep red blush. "Speaking of which, I believe the time is soon. We should finalize our preparations. I'm rather excited to bring the nobility down to a more reasonable level."
1. Mother Crow
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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 4, 2024 11:46:18 GMT -5
Rena nods, smiling softly and chirping happily as she reluctantly steps away from her little elf, silver eyes twinkling as she hums thoughtfully, "...that's good, that's good...and...yeah, it already does feel like that sometimes..." the crow murmurs softly before shaking her head, "...alright. time to focus. robbin' the barons. the warehouse and the drop point arenae too far from 'ere, so it shouldn't be more'n a few minutes walk to either. what do ye say t' muckin' things up for the local lords, eh?"
the crow grins, trilling softly and pulling further away as she turns to head toward the warehouse, silver eyes roving over the streets as the two of them enter the city, keeping one part of her mind focused on the feeling of her bayonets pressed up against her forearms as she walks, actually hissing at one fellow who made a grab at her satchel...she still carries the clutch with her everywhere she goes, too paranoid to leave them alone for any length of time, even if it means sacrificing her own convenience.
The warehouse is on the outskirts of town, dimly lit and patrolled by a handful of guards at the fence. Rena slips a pair of bayonets into her hands, frost flowing over and blunting the blades as she creeps toward the fence on near-silent feet.
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Post by Elvira, Wandering Cleric on Jan 5, 2024 21:13:50 GMT -5
Elvira follows quietly behind the crow, smiling the whole way. To her, it felt good to be around the one semblance of family she had in a long time. Seeing the person reach for the satchel, she unleashes the dark magic claws and was about to make a swipe, but burst out laughing as they scurried away from the hissing avian. She wraps an arm around Rena as they walk the rest of the way to the warehouse, hoping it would help ward off those looking to make a move on either of the two.
Approaching the fence, Elvira would look around the area before carefully climbing up and over the fence. She helped Rena over it before slinking towards the building nearby, staying low in the hopes of keeping out of eyesight. Sitting with her back against the wall, she sighed to release a bit of tension before looking to Rena. "What's the plan, emmë? We could go for the product to send a message, or we could destroy either the caravans or the ships carrying cargo to take out their means of distribution. I will be willing to do either, as I am just enjoying the opportunity to create chaos with my favorite crow."
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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 6, 2024 0:28:11 GMT -5
Mother Crow trills thoughtfully as she drops down from the fence, head cocking as she considers for a long moment before nodding, "...let's do both. knock out the guards, destroy the caravans and the ships, 'n run off with as much o'erpriced food an' toys as we c'n manage"
With that, she flicks a blunted bayonet out, sending it flying to slam into the nape of an unfortunate guard's neck, knocking the poor soul out cold even as the crow darts forward to retrieve the blade, eyes shimmering silver and white as she glances around, searching for a spot to stash the body...yeah, that'll do.
Rena shifts, dragging the guard by the ankles toward a nearby door to the warehouse, murmuring, "...there's likely only one or two guards inside, if that...probably a janitor's closet somewhere in there too...best case there's no guards inside, and we can just leave 'im inside the door..."
When she reaches the door she drops the unconscious guard's feet, sparing a moment to slip a pair of bayonets from her sleeve, another to ice them over with permafrost[cold touch, permafrost] before she brings them down on either side of the padlock as hard as she can. the ice shatters as a sharp bang sounds out, but the blades are unharmed...and more importantly the brackets the lock's bolt was slid through are ruined, the lock tumbling to the ground as Rena grins, "...alright, now we hide and wait for the guards to come to us"
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Post by Elvira, Wandering Cleric on Jan 6, 2024 4:06:45 GMT -5
Elvira nods and tries to move silently to sneak up on the guard before the blur of black feathers rushes past her and takes out the guard. She giggles and shakes her head, smiling wide as the crow moves to break the lock. "There are certain days where I forget just how much I love my crow mother. Today is not one of those times."
Moving in to the warehouse, she had cut in front of Rena with an arrow nocked and drawn. She aims up, then down, then to each of the sides to make sure the warehouse was clear of any unwelcome surprises from the guards for the nobles. When she was satisfied, she carefully released the tension from the bow and turned back with a warm smile. "Alright emmë,1 I see a good place up to the top of this stack of crates," she says while hopping up onto the first crate. They were wooden crates neatly stacked taller than the rest of the warehouse, and at the top was a spot the two could easily fit in. "I reckon that we could sit back there for both the advantage of height and the element of surprise. What do you think? Perhaps you could swoop down onto them and I could fire off arrows from the cover? If you'd like, this would also have the advantage of cover for the clutch. I could stay back and make sure nobody gets anywhere near." She points the last part of the idea out carefully and with a more steeled expression, knowing it was a sensitive idea to propose. She didn't want her newfound family to risk losing single soul, though. She knows the feeling, and she knows Rena knows it too.
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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 6, 2024 13:35:36 GMT -5
The crow tilts her head, then nods, spreading her wings and bringing them down hard to send herself up and over onto the crate, bayonets swiftly cutting it open so she can hide her clutch-satchel within.
With that done, she ices over and blunts the blades in her hands, silver eyes searching for movement...just in time for a guard to rush through the open door.
the woman glances around, eyes wide and searching before she spots Elvira and draws her sword and opens her mouth to shout, "This is private property! you're under arrest, elf!"
Rena suppresses a chuckle at the guard who very obviously never paid attention in 'looking up' training, readying a blunted bayonet to flick into the guard's temple...no, no, she'll let her little elf handle this one. she wants to see how the fledgling has improved since they last spoke...
The guard, meanwhile, advances on Elvira with sword in hand, her shield raised defensively...yeah, this one's a bit of a novice. The baron probably thought a handful of green soldiers would be sufficient to spook anyone who tried to steal from this shipment...
Not Mama Crow and her little fledgling, though...this poor guard has no idea what she's dealing with...
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Post by Elvira, Wandering Cleric on Jan 6, 2024 15:30:10 GMT -5
The elf shrugged and nonchalantly put her hands up, placing the bow down next to her. As the guard approached, she quickly swept up the bow and slammed it across the head of the woman. Seeing the guard reel back, Elvira placed the strings of the bow behind the guard's neck and used it to throw the guard down before nocking an arrow and quickly firing it into the back of the woman's head. Satisfied with her kill, she takes the arrow out and moves the body out of sight so that nobody entering would know there was a marksman. She climbs her way up to the position donning a pleased, yet focused look on her face. Sitting with her back against the crate, she smiles up to the crow. "I trust my kill was pleasing to watch, emmë quaco?1 Shame that it must happen but alas, it is the path they chose. I have learned to not fret too long about the necessary kill for at the end of the day, I must protect myself to protect others. Otherwise, I pass on and never see the clutch hatch from their shells." She smiles and looks down to the eggs, the same wondrous look in her eye as the first time she had seen them and felt their spirits. Looking back up, however, she had a new look. One of pride, mixed with an emotional blush. Suddenly, she hugs Rena. "Thank you for entrusting me with your kin, emmë. I will not let them come to harm, I refuse to let you down."
1: "Mamma Crow"
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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 6, 2024 17:23:15 GMT -5
Rena grins, trilling happily and dropping down from the crate before pulling her fledgling into a hug, chirping and trilling with pride, "you did so good, lor'tyrlr 'no!1 I'm so proud of you!" she chirps and trills and hugs her fledgling tight, smiling happily as she hums.
she chuckles, "...wasn't quite expecting a lethal blow, but I'm certainly not complaining! feels like just yesterday you were struggling to hurt anyone, let alone kill...stars, how far you've come, lor'tyrlr 'no..."
she sighs, slowly stretching and idly collecting the clutch-satchel as she glances around, "...alright. do we want to destroy all but one of the caravans carts and all the ships, then load up the remaining cart and skedaddle?"
that could be the plan...take as many toys and supplies as they can get away with, leave the baron no transport to work with...the mission was only to get out with as much loot as possible...nothing said they couldn't do damage... Rena trills thoughtfully, softly rocking from side to side even as she presses against her fledgling's side, savoring the knowledge that her little elf can take care of herself.
Immediate danger aside, things are looking good for Mother Crow.
1. little one
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Post by Elvira, Wandering Cleric on Jan 8, 2024 1:36:36 GMT -5
Elvira blushed deeply at the name. She'd heard it a few times by now, but each time had the same effect on her. "Well I normally don't take a fatal shot unless I needed to. She just decided to be the guard on the wrong day, as my hannor nésayër1 are present. I shall ask not hesitate to separate one's soul from their body should they decide to communicate threats to or around my family." She blushes once more when saying this, but her face was scarily serious. Nevertheless, now was no time to focus on this. She needed to make sure her family was safe.
Looking at the clutch of eggs to make sure they were in a spot she felt safe protecting, she takes a moment to think. "I think destroying all but one caravan would be best. Perhaps we could also make the warehouse vulnerable so looters could take what we could not? Any advantage we can gain over those kuu'datto2 nobles who would dare to gouge the pricing of goods in such a trifling time for Charon's economy is fine by me. I'd enjoy striking their monetary assets, as it is where they will feel the most pain." She said the last part with a smile, perhaps enjoying it a bit too much. Something had clearly changed for her, whether it was for better or worse.
1: "Brothers and sisters" 2. "Bastard"
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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 8, 2024 11:56:41 GMT -5
Rena smiles softly, tilting her head in thought. Something had probably changed with her fledgling elf, but now was no time to pry. She steps away, trusting Elvira to keep her little siblings safe as the crow spreads her wings and brings them down to send herself soaring up onto the tops of the shelves, trilling softly and stalking along the tops in search of more guards…yes, she can do lethal…easier than nonlethal, if she’s being honest.
Three times she finds a guard rushing toward the front of the warehouse, and three times the sharpened end of a bayonet slams into the crook of a poor soldier’s neck, cutting each of them down like puppets.
With that done, she quickly darts back across the tops of the shelves toward her fledgling and unhatched chicks, eyes burning bone white in the darkness as she approaches the living members of her little family.
When she gets there, she drops down out of the darkness and darts in close, checking over her eggs and elvish fledgling for a long moment before trilling happily and pulling Elvira into another hug. she's been feeling rather affectionate lately, and it's really showing.
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Post by Elvira, Wandering Cleric on Jan 9, 2024 18:01:57 GMT -5
Elvira watched with a wondrous look, gazing upon the raw beauty that was an aviankin in battle. It was an incredible sight to behold, seeing her matriarch dancing through the crowd of guards, the blades glinting in the low light as if Tolling Bell was smiling back at her. The sight gave her an odd sense of warmth. Perhaps it was from the knowledge that Rena would protect her the moment the need arises, or it could have been the pride of knowing she was a part of this family. Perhaps it was both. Regardless, she was happy around Rena. She just couldn't wait to be happy around another person, too...
The warmth of Rena's hug pulls her into a new trance. She places her forehead against the feathered shoulder of the crow and smiles wide. "It's such a pleasure to finally see the ferocity of your blades dancing in battle, it gives me such pride to know my emmë carries such beauty in her movements. We shouldn't wait around too long, however. There will be more guards coming when they realize these hadn't returned from their checks. We should begin to take what we can and loading up the largest caravan." As she speaks, she leans down and places a hand on one of the eggs and smiles wide. "I get the feeling that it will be any time now, soon we'll have a little warrior to watch over. I pray that I will be there when they begin pipping. Oh, will it be a sight to see!"
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Post by Rena Brighteyes on Jan 9, 2024 21:28:20 GMT -5
Rena grins, trilling happily, “...any day now, and the first one’s gonna hatch…stars, I’m going to need to build a den for the little ones, aren’t I…can’t go places with them until they can defend themselves at least a little bit…”
Then she grins wider, “ah! I actually have a new trick I’ve been wanting to show you,” and grabs at the air as though it were the hilt of one of her bayonets…and one of the bayonets she’d thrown just appears in her hand with a slight warping of the air, “managed to find someone who was both able and willing to teach me the basics of space magic, and this is what I focused on learning!”
The crow does a similar grabbing motion with her other hand, and a cloth appears in that hand for her to use to wipe off the bayonet, which she then slides up her sleeve. Two more repetitions and one distinctly bloodied napkin later, and she’s got all three of her thrown bayonets back up her sleeves.
“Alright…let’s get moving, then. Step one should be pretty obvious…” she hums softly, grinning and moving to collect her clutch before gently tugging her fledgling along in search of the boats and carts
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